Ice and Fire: Chemical Reactions
by Waffle dah Cat
Summary: We are a chemical reaction. We are sisters, but we are leaders of rival clans. She hates me with an intensity that's hard to deflect. When the long-awaited battle arrives... AN: Okay, so, I totally did not notice the very close titles between this and book 2 of the first Warriors series, sorry, Erin Hunters! :3 The weird thing is, it's a complete coincidence. :D
1. Prologue

I looked at her. She looked at me. It was not love. It was more of a burning hate, a chemical reaction between the two of us, one that would rage between our Clans and destroy them...

She was spotted; I was striped. She hated me from the instant we were born, no matter that we were siblings. Our Clans, in the case of half-clan births, would divide the kits between the two clans, if there was an uneven number of kits but more than one, the undivisible kit would be sent to live as a loner.

Our litter had five kittens. She was firstborn, I second, Swankit third, Mallowkit fourth, and Fallowkit fifth. As I mentioned before, the 'odd' kit was sent to live as a loner, in this case Fallowkit. She became Fallow and my parents fought for her, they fought to keep her and they were killed.

In our time, the code was cruel. Cats who broke it were punished by being lamed, or, in most cases, death. There were two Clans, and two leaders when we were kits- Shrewstar and Shredstar. They were like the old legend Tigerstar; except worse. They could add to the code, make what was morally wrong right in the eyes of the Code, but they could not remove what was already in the code. StarClan had long since stopped visiting them.

Because our mother was WhiteClan and our father BlackClan, Icekit, the firstborn, and Swankit were sent to live in WhiteClan, while Mallowkit and I were sent to BlackClan.

Even if I had been offered WhiteClan, I would have traded places with Fallowkit and not live in that deceiving, evil clan with cats who only want for themselves, where you can get clawed for simply talking to a certain cat. In BlackClan, you at least have good cats, trust, a united cause, and even love of some kind.

At our separation ceremony (not much of a ceremony) I felt bad for Swankit. She was a very nice cat who always looked out for us, especially Mallowkit, who was born without much of a tail-just a tiny stump-and she could not jump or keep her balance very well. In WhiteClan, she would either become a hollow stump, without a heart, mindless; or driven to despair. As for Icekit, I felt no remorse. I had felt the tension between us ever since we first laid eyes on each other. I could not understand, at first, why she hated me with such intensity, and I tried to reconcile with her. But then I understood- she simply hated me for existing. For being younger, second, for taking away attention, for being different from her. I never understood, completely, why she hates me for something I can't even control. She doesn't have anything against Swankit or Mallowkit.

Now, the three of us are warriors. Swankit ran away the day after the ceremony, and we never tracked her down. I am Firetail; Mallowkit is Mallowtail, and Icekit is Icefeather.

Her name suits her. Icefeather; seemingly delicate, soft, but hard, cold, icy.

Then, Shredear and Shrewheart died of old age, and Icefeather and I were chosen as the new leaders.

I always try to soften the code, to reduce the punishment, to be nice. I hate punishing cats for little things that don't matter, like bringing someone 'bad' moss or other things of the sort. Icefeather, on the other hand, doesn't care. She focuses on bringing herself and her clan to glory.

Glory that can only be found in battle against your own sister.

AN: In these two clans you don't get the suffix -star. You retain your original name. Instead, the medicine cat scratches a star into your left paw. See my Ice and Fire::Survival Guide for more information. :D


	2. Chapter 1

I was snoozing in my den, finally not bothered by pesky Clanmates, when I heard a thump outside of the reeds.

I slowly got up, trying not to crackle the dry moss in my nest. I peeked in a sneaky hole I have hidden in the side of my reed entrance, and then I saw her.

Icefeather. With more than a few warriors of WhiteClan.

Since the warriors den is connected to my den, I slithered through the tunnel and woke up a couple warriors on the way to Mallowtail. I'm admittedly clumsy, and I stepped on more than a few tails. "Sorry!" I whispered to Sparrowpelt, who groaned when I stepped on the middle of his tail. 'Mallowtail, Mallowtail," I whispered urgently. She immediately woke up, saw me, and padded out of the den back to my leader's den. She's much more graceful than I am. She didn't disturb one cat.

Mallowtail is my Battle leader. She is in charge of the warriors whenever we fight a battle with WhiteClan, or with anyone, for that matter. I take her to the back of my den, where no one can hear us, and tell her to immediately wake up all the warriors and initiate a stealthy battle on the WhiteClan warriors in our camp. She's an amazing fighter-she's learned to fight even without the sure steadiness that comes from a real tail-and a good predictor-it's like she knows where the enemy will go before they do.

Now that I think about it, WhiteClan and BlackClan are built much differently than the Clans of old. We still have patrols and borders, a fresh-kill pile, assements, naming ceremonies (a couple more ceremonies at that!), and Gatherings-but those usually don't end well. However, there are two teams of cats; most cats are warriors. Around five are medicine cats with one of them being the medicinal leader. It's kind of like having two smaller Clans inside of each Clan. There usually are two or three cantankerous elders, and some mothers with kits. The kits are safely housed at the most protected part of the camp, under a fallen tree reinforced with mud, brambles, and sharpened sticks. The camps are much smaller, as we have been downsized and cramped because of the Twolegs' new houses being built.

The tension between WhiteClan and BlackClan are running high constantly, because of Icefeather. I would have been happy to let her and her Clan live, but no-o, she has to be leader of everything, and fight everyone.

There is another warrior in BlackClan that I am very close to. Her name is Flametail, and she's even clumsier than I am. Some cats call her hyperactive. She couldn't catch a butterfly if it snared itself on her claw, but she doesn't really care. She's defensive, yet fun to be around. Just watch out if she's in a bad mood. She doesn't hesitate to lash out.

There are many –tails in BlackClan. No one knows why. Shrewheart insisted on naming five or six warriors with –tail.

I slip out of the sneaky hole, ready to do battle with my sister in the latest of skirmishes.

Something tells me this is more than just a battle.

Something tells me this is _the _battle.


	3. Chapter 2

Unseen by her stocky idiots, I manage to slip right up behind Icefeather. She is scanning the clearing, but not thoroughly, for I can already see that she doesn't see my warriors.  
With a battle cry from Mallowtail, cats spring onto Icefeather's warriors and knock them down. It's two to one in my advantage, but my warriors don't kill, unlike WhiteClan. They lame.  
Unexpectedly, I jump onto her back and growl into her ear, close amidst the noise of the battle.  
'Miss me?'  
She snarls back at me. 'It was supposed to be a surprise for my dear sister!'  
With this, she expertly flips over, bringing me down on my back, hard.  
Fox-dung! I thought. You should have been prepared for that.  
I try to wriggle out but she has my paws pinned to the ground, and now she's going to rip open my belly, but slowly. Very slowly. Icefeather revels in this kind of thing.  
Yet, I am suddenly able kick my back legs and launch her off of me, she having unpinned one of my paws to slash me open. Not so smart after all, huh?  
We engage in one of the fiercest battles I have ever fought. We are a chemical reaction, rolling, hissing, and slashing. Fighting cats part as we roll their way. We flip over a couple times, and she slashes my leg repeatedly, and gives me a scratch on my flank. I, in return, claw her ear and bite her tail until she lets out a fierce shriek. We fight because not only do our lives depend on it-our Clans' lives do as well. Icefeather at least knows to help her clan. We roll on, slamming into cats, breaking apart fights.

"I-never-understood-why-you-hate-me-so" I managed between attempts to bite Icefeather's anything off, currently in an advantage.  
"Because-they-thought-you-were-better-than-me!" she gasped out.  
In a flash, I jump off of her and pin her down to the ground, noticing how BlackClan and WhiteClan had seemingly stopped fighting. Something unsettles me about that, but my mind isn't clear and I focus on Icefeather.  
"Ashclaw? Come help me."  
Ashclaw is one of our strongest warriors, stocky. I come up to his chin. He comes up, unsure what to do, for he sees I am not very stable.  
She doesn't resist and insult me as I had expected as I held her down. Her eyes burn with a sick hate, but I can still see honor in them. She will not allow herself to be brought down like this. But there is something else in her eyes… Love? Respect? But for whom? Not me, that much I know. Ashclaw squeezed her paws to the ground.  
Suddenly, I feel a heavy weight on my back and incredible pain. The most sense I can make is that someone attacked me... Then, blinding pain, and an incredible, eye-searing white.

**AN: I never know why author always say that when you fall into unconsciousness, you see darkness-I guess because you close your eyes. But if you are in pain, wouldn't there a blinding color to relate to the pain? And _then _darkness?  
**


	4. Chapter 3

The darkness is cool, welcoming. I know it is beckoning me to come and give up my first life. Not today. I have a lot of life left in here, and I need to finish it. I back away into the blinding white, which I realize is pain.  
Bam. Just like that, I'm back. Ashclaw is arguing with the WhiteClan warrior, who, though the same size as Ashclaw, cowers in shame. "Mallowtail?" I mew faintly, cursing my own weak voice. "Mallowtail?" Her face appears before mine. She helps me get up, tells me that Icefeather's in my den, that the WhiteClan warriors have left and that the medicine cats are working on wounds.  
I try to start walking and immediately to my den, feeling an awful pain in a back leg. I sit down to look at it, groaning with discomfort.  
Oh. A scratch starts deep in my paw, winding up my leg to my hindquarters. It's down to the bone-little pieces of white show through the mass of torn fur and dried blood.  
Mallowtail notices my surprise. "It was the scratches from Icefeather plus the WhiteClan warrior that jumped on you."  
I shrug. "It hurts badly, but otherwise-I mean, I can still walk. Kind of."  
She shakes her head. "Robinpelt's making a poultice and a strengthener for your paw out of moss and crushed leaf pulp."  
Testily, I ask, "And how is he going to keep this contraption of moss on my paw?"  
Mallowtail brightens considerably. "On a border patrol, Barkpaw found sap from a tree that was incredibly sticky, and turned opaque when you rolled or smashed it. It stuck to his paws like... Nothing I've ever seen before! It comes off if you stay in water for a while, though."

My interest was piqued. "So it went from being clear to musty?"

She laughed. "No! It was like nothing I'd seen before. It went from being clear to being absolutely solid."

(Quick note: this substance they found is sap from cherry trees, which is sometimes called gum due to its stickiness and elasticity.)

"Interesting. We will have to collect some of this sap." I meowed. "Oh…" I groaned when I put my weight on my back leg. "I'll have to hop on three legs while this gets better."

I hopped to my den, seeing Icefeather curled up in the back, guarded by Applepelt and Cloudfur. I nod to both warriors and prod Icefeather.

She looks at me with disdain. "Here you have me, holed up in your den. What else do you want? To talk about how awful I am? Or maybe something else I don't know about? Something worthless, probably." She goes as if to claw me and both Applepelt and Cloudfur give her a hard look. Icefeather sighs and settles back down, as if in complete ease, although her entire body is tense, ready to spring.

Hyperactive Flametail and Mallowtail have joined me and Flametail, fiery and defensive as she is, is quite steamed, for she knows about the tension between Icefeather and I.

"Oh," she snarls, "So the facts that you have hated her and done nothing for her from the moment you were born and that she only tried to love you isn't worth talking about?"

"Flametail," I sigh, "Calm down."

"Calm down!?" she says, jumping up and down. "Calm down!? This piece of fox dung is insulting you and your clan-which means she's insulting me-and you expect me to calm down!?"

Mallowtail murmurs her agreement. "Flametail has a point, Firetail."

I shush both of them. "Icefeather, you are my sister. Not only are you my sister, but we should be the closest of all our siblings."

"Well, looks like that didn't happen," she meowed sarcastically.

"Icefeather," I say, my temper ending, "Why do you hate me?"

Icefeather glares at me. "Because! Because our parents always thought you were better than me. Because you're so perfect-"

I interrupt her. "Me? Perfect?"

"Yes, you."

I finally gave up. "You know what?"

"What?" she spat.

"I just-"

She interrupted me this time. "Know what? I have a destiny. I am in a prophecy. I am supposed to save WhiteClan and BlackClan and rename them IceClan, by the path of glory, blood, and battles. I was chosen by StarClan!"

"Some-one's a lun-a-tic…" Flametail meows in a singsong.

"Ugh." I sighed. I'm not up to being a leader today. "Mallowtail, you decide what to do with her. Take her back to WhiteClan, keep her here, do anything you want. Just make sure it doesn't result in death."

Mallowtail is obviously surprised at this change of power. "But…" she shakes her head. "Never mind."

I leave my den, grateful. "Thanks, Mallowtail." I head to the medicine den.

Mallowtail stays with Icefeather.

Flametail bounces out behind me, chasing a butterfly which is frantically flying away from her. "Aww," she meows.

I have to laugh at her kit antics. "Are you ever going to grow up?" I tease playfully.

"Nope!" she grins, running to catch up to me.

Together we head to the medicine den, Flametail helping support me. For a while, I can forget about Icefeather, and worry about myself and my Clan.


	5. Chapter 4

"Hi, Robinpelt." I meow, trying to be cheerful as we slip past the honeysuckle that surrounds the entrance to the medicine den.

You really can't call it a 'den.' It's at least two times the size of the warriors den, nearly half the camp. Robinpelt and the other four medicine cats-Lilypaw, Oakfur, Darkstreak, and Larcheye- have divided the space equally into what could be called small dens of their own, showing where one's den starts and the other's ends with a small barrier formed of branches and mud, coming up halfway of my leg, that anyone could easily jump over, without a running start.

I walk into Robinpelt's 'den', waving hello to the other medicine cats with my tail.

"They tell me you have a moss-and-sap contraption to put on my paw?" I ask.

He nods. "Yes. First a poultice, then the so-called contraption." He says this with the faintest hint of sarcasm, and I realize that he's young, for a fully-fledged medicine cat leader. Some of the medicine cat are older than him by far. He's the same age I am. Between his responsibilities and training of Lilypaw, nobody's ever really thought about his age. He became an apprentice a little earlier than I did, but that's common, since he's a medicine cat, and their training takes longer.

I look around, watching the medicine cats take care of wounds for warriors injured in the battle. No serious injuries-the battle didn't last long enough for that. I am relieved. A moon ago, we had a skirmish on the border, routine, but Lightpaw got injured badly-now, half of his tail is missing.

Robinpelt walks to where Lilypaw is eagerly tucking something into a soft strip of moss the color of the lake on a sunny green-leaf day. He heads towards me with this moss, which on one side is covered with a thick layer of oozing, yellowy herb pulp. Lilypaw comes with some of the sap in a leaf, her eyes shining.

"This is the first time, ever, the medicine cats have tried something like this." She tells me excitedly. "He'll just put the moss on your paw so you can walk some, but not have the poultice fall off, and then put more of the poultice where the wound countinues into your leg. There, it'll just stick to your fur."

Lilypaw was born for being a medicine cat. Such enthusiasm for medicine has not been seen in a while.

Robinpelt orders me to put my leg up onto the barrier and I do it, where he attaches the moss around my paw and seals it off on the ends and edges, gently applying the sap with a stick held in his teeth.

"There. That should do it!" he exclaims, relieved. He smothers what's left of the poultice on the rest of the wound and sends me off to my den with a warning of five days' rest; no hunting or patrolling, but walking in the woods is acceptable; and to see him every day. He admonishes me to try not to put too much weight on my paw, and I wave him off. "I'll be fine!" I groan as I trudge to the Rock where Mallowtail is standing, planning to announce something. "Actually," I muttered to myself, "I take that back."


End file.
